Contract Extension relating to the Fast-Track Mental Health Social Work Graduate Programme

Tender description

Lot 1: The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is extending the term of the Contract to include two additional cohorts for the fast-track mental health social work graduate programme with additional key performance indicators, service credits provisions and other consequential amendments relating to the extension.<br/><br/>Since 2016 DHSC has funded a mental health social work fast-track graduate programme (MHSW-GP). Think Ahead (TA) is our current delivery partner. The two-year scheme combines extensive on-the-job experience with classroom teaching, with participants qualifying as social workers, attaining a postgraduate diploma in Social Work, and completing their assessed and supported year in employment (ASYE).<br/><br/>From 2016-2022 Think Ahead was grant funded . The positive impact of the programme led to DHSC conducting a procurement exercise to move from grant funding to a more cost-effective longer-term contract which was approved by Ministers and signed in July 2020. The contract currently forms part of DHSC baseline spend and is within budget. For a cohort of 160 participants, this equates to £9.1M and the overall cost for 3 cohorts is £27.2M which will run until 2025. Think Ahead contract is a 2+1 and was recently extended last year for a final 3rd cohort which starts in 2023 and ends in 2025.<br/>This is the last cohort in the current contract, to initiate the process of extending TA for a further two cohorts starting in 2024 and 2025. The contract would end in 2027.